


the truth is finally breaking through

by bellamyblakru



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, BAMF Merlin (Merlin), Canon Era, Good Morgana (Merlin), Jealous Arthur Pendragon (Merlin), King Arthur Pendragon (Merlin), M/M, Magic Ban Lifted (Merlin), Merlin's Magic Revealed (Merlin), POV Merlin (Merlin), bc i cant stop writing different ways it could have happened oops, bc i enjoy that LOL, but no one rlly knows about our boy still, druids give merlin away and they ship merthur too, ill probably add more as i go, might do a little of pov arthur too and it’ll be separated by ~~, oh yeah, okay so, some cursing as well im sorry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-16
Updated: 2020-11-27
Packaged: 2021-03-10 04:15:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 11,648
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27597395
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bellamyblakru/pseuds/bellamyblakru
Summary: the magic ban is already lifted, morgana is back home and happy, but merlin is terrified of telling everyone about his magic.a group of druids tell his friends for him though...so merlin is now forced to compete in camelot’s tournament for court sorcerer.
Relationships: Merlin/Arthur Pendragon, Merlin/Arthur Pendragon (Merlin)
Comments: 60
Kudos: 710





	1. Chapter 1

Arthur removed the ban on magic two months ago. 

Morgana came back and begged for forgiveness a month after that. Merlin begged Morgana for forgiveness that same week. 

Now, three months after the ban, Merlin stood behind his king during his audiences with his subjects and still, no one knew about his magic. Well, not entirely true since Lancelot and Gaius knew, but Arthur? Not yet. 

Merlin didn’t know how to tell him, if he was being honest. He’s spun little lies and held secrets in his heart the minute he opened his golden eyes all those years ago. 

It wasn’t that Merlin didn’t trust Arthur, or that he thought Arthur would hurt him. 

It was the lies that laid at the foundation of their friendship. 

Lies and deceptions and loyalty and love—that’s what Merlin felt defined their relationship at the end of the day.

Merlin would die for his king—he actually thinks he has literally died for his king, multiple times, but he doesn’t like to dwell on that fact too long. He didn’t tell Morgana since Gaius was so adamant against it..and who was he to go against one of the few people he knew had his best interest at heart? He loved Gaius, and he was the one of the two mentors that helped him survive all these years. 

Kilgharrah also told him, _constantly,_ how important it was to stay hidden. When Merlin told him how petrified he was to tell Arthur, the dragon’s advice was to simply not say anything—and Gaius agreed. 

Merlin didn’t agree, but they knew better, didn’t they?

There are only a few more audiences left, but there was a small break at the moment. The roundtable knights were laughing with Arthur about something, but Merlin tuned them out on accident with his musing about his lies.

The conversation turned more sober, Merlin could tell, by the way Arthur’s back straightened at Leon’s inquiry. 

Merlin walked over to Gwaine, who smiled and slung his arm around him. 

Arthur’s eyes narrowed at them, but he looked back at Leon to answer the question Merlin missed. 

“Court Sorcerer? You think we should throw..what? A tournament? Trials? You believe people would come and want to work for me after everything my father did?”

Merlin coughed, still a little surprised with the idea of magic being thrown about, and answered before Leon could open his mouth, “Arthur, you are not your father. The people know this, I’m sure of it. Anyone would be honored to work for you.”

Arthur looked thoughtful for a moment, but shook his head and smirked at him, “You consider cleaning my tunics and pouring my drinks an honor, Merlin? That’s quite a compliment from you.”

Merlin let out a small laugh and rolled his eyes, but he didn’t respond to the taunting this time since he was thinking about who he would want Arthur’s Court Sorcerer to be. 

The conversation continued onto less magical subjects, to Merlin’s great pleasure, after a short pause. 

Lancelot, however, walked over to Merlin’s other side a few moments later and spoke to Arthur, “Sire, what would the Court Sorcerer be responsible for?”

Merlin gave Lance a sidelong glance, not liking the direction this conversation was going again. 

Arthur leaned back on his throne and tilted his head in such an endearing manner that Merlin had to look quickly away before he did something stupid with the love running rampantly through him at the act. 

“Hmm, I would have to ask Gaius, Geoffrey, and, maybe, Morgana what they think on that, but I think it would work fairly similar to a first knight...but with magic? Almost like a magical right hand man.”

He paused after his non-question question, and looked at Merlin for a moment, pondering. Merlin looked right back, a small frown on his lips at the unwanted attention. Merlin felt Lancelot’s intense stare going from Merlin to Arthur, all the knights doing similar acts in his peripheral. 

Arthur smiled softly at whatever he was thinking, but he dropped it as he looked back to Lancelot, “I would hope, at least, that they would help me take care of all the magical aspects of council. So, having someone who believes in everything the knight code goes by is not a bad place to start, huh? Maybe a tournament is indeed needed.”

The knights were all nodding their heads in agreement, except Lancelot, who was busy staring holes at Merlin’s head to get him to look at him. Merlin refused. 

Leon announced that the proceedings should continue and finish out for the day, to which Arthur agreed. Only two more audiences to go and then Merlin can go hide in his room to wonder why destiny is so shit to him. He was too busy in his own mind to notice the farmers who quickly came and went.

He remembered who the last audience was with too late. He walked quickly to Arthur’s side before the group came closer. 

“Arthur, I forgot to do something for Gaius. I need to leave.”

Arthur’s eyes widened, “What are you rambling about? This is the last group for today. We’re almost done.”

Merlin was already shaking his head, “Sire, _please_.”

The earnest pleading gave Arthur true pause, “Merlin, wha-“

It was too late.

Merlin’s magic tingled when the Druids came closer, and he heard one of them gasp when Merlin turned around to face them. He was on the dais with Arthur, and he couldn’t run away while everyone was watching. 

So, ignoring his instinct to flee, Merlin straightened his back and lifted his chin instead, looking at the small group of foreign Druids. 

When he made eye contact with them, they all dropped to their knees in perfect unison.

The room was dead silent when one of Druids whispered: 

“ _Emrys._ ”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> uh yes hello again lmfao i cant stop writing merlin fics apparently. this shouldn’t be too long, i think? maybe like three/four chapters. it’s my second merlin multi chapter fic, though!! im hyped.
> 
> come yell at me about merthur on tumblr @bellamyblakru as well if you want😂
> 
> hopefully ill be back soon with another update!!  
> (also, title from perfect harmony by jatp)


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the aftermath of the reveal!

Merlin saw Arthur sit up straighter as he addressed the group, “Emrys? Who are you talking about?”

Merlin held in his groan when they did not move an inch at Arthur’s question. He never liked being revered—especially when he felt he didn’t deserve it. 

Merlin, resigning to his fate, let out an awkward cough to clear his throat, “There’s no need to bow, I assure you,” he walked down the dais and helped the leader stand, “And, please, call me Merlin.” 

He smiled at the group who stared at him with such veneration that his smile faded a little—this is why he avoided the Druids, he never knew how to act. 

“It’s—it’s an honor, Em—Merlin, Lord Merlin,” the leader stumbled out, still bowing his head at him. 

Merlin heard a couple of the knights choke out a noise in surprise, “Oh. Oh no, it’s just Merlin here. Thank you, though!” 

The Druid nodded his head, his eyes still wide with awe, when he turned back to Arthur. 

Arthur was completely still when Merlin turned around to face him as well, his face unnervingly blank. Merlin was about to speak again, not knowing what he was planning on saying, but Arthur beat him to it. 

With his face still cautiously bland, he addressed the small group, “Thank you for coming. I’m sure you came here for a reason, but I was wondering if I could offer chambers for you all to stay in Camelot for a time.” He flicked his eyes to Merlin and back to the leader, “As it turns out, I would appreciate some assistance in creating a magical tournament for a new court position available.”

The Druid frowned in confusion, “I’m sorry, King Arthur, but couldn’t Emrys take up the position? He is the best of us, after all.”

Merlin nearly flinched at Arthur’s narrowed expression at him when he said, “Oh? Is that right?”

All the Druids nodded eagerly at that and the youngest of the group, someone’s daughter who was around eight summers old, ran up to the front of Merlin, with her back to Arthur, “Emrys! Show the king what you can do!”

Merlin couldn’t help but give the small girl a genuine smile, but said sheepishly, “Oh..I don’t think..”

Arthur scoffed, “Come on, _Emrys_ ,” which did make Merlin flinch this time, “You would not want to let _your_ people down, now, would you?”

The leader of the Druids narrowed his eyes at Arthur’s tone, “Sorry, is something wrong here?”

Merlin snapped his head at the leader before Arthur could respond, “No! It’s fine….?”

The leader smiled, offering his name, “Declan.”

Merlin smiled at him, “Declan. I appreciate the loyalty, I truly do, but it’s okay. Arthur is my King, and he is the true and only leader here. I answer to him, and him alone.”

Declan nodded his head in understanding, but he did not bow for Arthur the way he bowed for Merlin—which did not go unnoticed. 

Merlin looked up at his King, whose eyes were wide. Merlin could tell that Arthur’s thoughts were going a mile a minute, but the King’s stare on him was unfaltering. 

Gwaine sauntered up next to Arthur, smiling broadly, “I knew it! Oh, Merls, of course you’re this Emrys fellow. Come on! Show us what you got.”

Merlin smiled at his friend, grateful that Gwaine didn’t seem to hate him like he expected. Merlin looked at Lancelot next who was slowly creeping towards him since the beginning of the exchange for support. At Merlin’s eye contact, Lancelot's strides went faster until he was about five feet away.

Lance gave him an encouraging smile and said softly to him, “It’s okay, Merlin. No matter what, I’m on your side.”

Merlin almost started tearing up at the similar expressions of understanding from Leon, Percy, and Elyan—Leon was the most surprising, and Merlin could tell that Leon was thinking the same thing when Merlin gave him a quizzical look. 

Leon grinned, “No offense, Merlin, you were never too subtle when our King was knocked out and you saved everyone...multiple times.”

Merlin let out a weak laugh, “Oh,” but he looked at Arthur again, who was still rigid in his seat. Merlin actually thinks Arthur went more still when the knights seemed to accept him so fluidly, but at Merlin’s questioning eyebrows, Arthur gave a stiff nod. 

~~~~~~~~~~

Arthur’s mind repeated _liar liar liar_ over and over again as Merlin’s eyes went beautifully golden. Arthur watched in a silent, detached amazement at the display Merlin conjured with a thought. 

A flower crown, made of vibrant blues and pinks, spun itself on the small girl’s head, who gasped in delight. Merlin had flower petals flying all around them in a tornado of magnificent hues of every color. Royal blue and red butterflies did lazy circling around them. 

Arthur saw his roundtable knights looking at the display with awe, Gwaine was actually so giddy that Arthur was sure he would kiss Merlin any minute. 

That thought didn’t help—though he pushed the feeling out of his mind.

The gold in Merlin’s eyes twinkled in delight when the small girl grabbed Lancelot, Gwaine, and Percy to have them start dancing around in the floating petals. The sight of his men dancing almost made him laugh, but Merlin’s squeal of protest grabbed his attention. 

The Druid leader, Declan, grabbed him to start dancing as well. 

Merlin looked breathtaking. He was forced to join the Druids’ dancing circle, who all looked at him like he was a king. Their _king._ That thought alone made Arthur heart flutter traitorously.

 _He lied to you for years,_ he tried to convince himself that this wasn’t the same Merlin. It couldn’t be. 

Merlin, his stupidity loyal, brave, courageous Merlin, wouldn’t pretend to be his friend for years if it wasn’t true, right? 

What does having magic mean, now? He legalized it months ago, why did he wait? Arthur’s heart clenched when Gwaine threw himself towards Merlin, who just added twinkling lights to the small gathering in the waning sunlight. 

Arthur watched as Gwaine picked Merlin up and hugged him tightly—Arthur tried not to notice the tears flowing down Merlin’s face. 

He could read the acceptance there, the pure joy written on Merlin’s features. His other two knights reluctantly joined when two women from the Druid group beckoned them forwards. 

As he watched, he felt some kind of peace settle deep within him. He would ask Merlin the questions soon, but for now, he can think about the tournament he now has to throw. 

~~~~~~~~~~

Merlin was crying. Full blown tears at the end of his display, when the dancing stopped and the petals floated away, and all that was left was the twinkling lights he didn’t remember making. All the knights were beaming at him, but Merlin’s heart cracked when he looked back towards Arthur and his smile dropped off in a heartbeat. 

He couldn’t tell what his king was thinking. The mask softened a bit, but it did not go away. He needed to talk to Arthur, and fast. 

Arthur sat up when the dancing ceased to address the Druids, “I must say, that was quite a performance,” he nodded his head at Merlin with what Merlin donned Arthur’s “king persona” fully in place. The formality of it broke Merlin’s heart more. 

“However,” he walked down his dais towards the small group, “I believe that Camelot will still need to throw a tournament for the place in the court. Merlin here can make some nice twinkling lights, but I need a warrior—not whatever that was.”

The dismissive tone made Merlin bristle. _Like I haven’t saved his life countless times_ , Merlin thought heartbroken and upset, _but he doesn’t know that_ , his mind added helpfully. 

The dismissal also made the Druids bristle, but none of them spoke up against Arthur again after Merlin made sure they knew that Arthur was the true and only king here. 

So, Declan inclined his head, “It would be our pleasure to stay, King Arthur Pendragon. The more time we can spend with Emrys is an honor beyond compare.”

Arthur quirked an eyebrow, but he simply nodded his head in understanding, “I’ll have someone show you to your rooms, then.”

The next few minutes went by quickly. George lead the Druids out, the knights went to go get dinner for the roundtable meeting, and only Arthur and Merlin remained. 

Arthur was back on his throne, simply staring at the lights Merlin couldn’t figure out how to get rid of. 

“Merlin?”

Merlin looked away from the door back to Arthur, “Sire?”

Arthur slowly looked back at him, “Are you going to explain? Or am I to think that you simply lied and deceived me for the fun of it?”

Merlin flinched, feeling the air whoosh out of him, and cleared his throat but no words came out. Merlin stared at Arthur. His golden king. 

Merlin fell to his knees, “Arthur,” the tears came back full force again, “I wanted to tell you for so long.”

Arthur stood up and walked in front of Merlin, “Tell me what.”

Merlin choked on his tears, “I—I was born with magic. Like Morgana.”

“Born with magic? And you didn’t tell me once I lifted the ban because…?”

Merlin tilted his head further down, “I was terrified.”

Arthur fell to his knees in front of him, “Terrified? Of..of me?”

Merlin snapped his head up, “No, no! Well, not anymore. At first, I didn’t want you to have to pick between your father and me, and then I just didn’t want you to hate me. I’ve lied for so—so long, Arthur. But my magic is for you, Arthur, only you. It always has been and it always will be.”

Arthur gasped, the light returning in those bright blue eyes Merlin loved, “You saved me in the cave that night, didn’t you? And all those branches? Every time a monster couldn’t be defeated without magic and would mysteriously die, it was you!”

Merlin, still crying, nodded blearily, “I’ll tell you everything. No more lying, Arthur. I promise on my mother’s life.”

Arthur nodded distantly, staring at Merlin like he was someone new, “Come to my room, and tell me everything?” 

Merlin shook his head eagerly, and together they walked to his chambers. 

~~~~~~~~~~~

Arthur was speechless, listening to Merlin’s story unfold. It was a parallel, darker story to his life—filled with sadness, despair, love, hope, lost, and magic. 

Merlin cried talking about his first kill, his first love, his father, what happened with the dragons and Morgana. Everything that happened to Merlin, Merlin’s response was to tuck it into himself—constantly feeling alone and lost in a world that hated him simply for being born. 

Arthur felt less alone in his burden than he has all his life. Here was this beautiful, but broken second part of his soul, crying to him about how he was forced to hide his entire childhood in fear for his mother and his only friend. 

And Arthur realized: Merlin was his true equal—a king in his own right. 

By the end of the tale, the moon was high in the sky. Both of the boys were leaning against the chairs on the floor near the fireplace, dried tear tracks on both their faces. 

Merlin was staring into the fire like it held all the answers and questions of life when he asked sadly, “So, do you want me gone, then?”

Arthur started, already watching Merlin’s face reflect the firelight in almost a reverent way, and laughed out, “Why on earth would I want you gone after everything you did for me?”

Merlin’s solemn face didn’t flicker, “Because I lied.”

Arthur’s heart cracked at the pain in Merlin’s tone, “No, Merlin. You did what you had to do to survive for so long—though, I don’t know how I never noticed it before. Even Leon noticed,” here he smiled at Merlin’s agreed disbelief at his first knight, “and, Merlin,” Merlin finally looked towards Arthur then, “I understand, and it’ll take time to make things right, but I want you to stay with me for as long as you want to be here.”

Merlin smiled at him then and something bright uncurled in Arthur’s heart, “Arthur, everything I am is for you. Always. I’ll be here, saving your backside, for as long as you want me too.”

Arthur laughed and grabbed Merlin into a crushing hug.

Merlin chuckled into Arthur’s neck and breathed out, “So...A tournament? Still? Even if you have the mighty Emrys bowing at your feet?”

Arthur pulled Merlin away, his beaming smile matching Merlin’s own, “Well, _Lord_ Merlin, all of your adventures happen to be in the past. I need you to compete, my friend, and if you’re truly the best? Then you’ll win my position.” 

Arthur winked at Merlin’s fake outrage, and Merlin stumbled out, “Arthur! I hate tournaments. I don’t like hurting people.”

Arthur’s face softened a little, “Merlin. I just want you to show the world who stands at my side...who has stood at my side since the beginning. You know, though,” here he grabbed both sides of Merlin’s face, “you don’t have to prove anything to me. I pick you, each and every time. Even before the Druids, when I was wondering who I would want to be my magical right hand man,” Arthur pressed his forehead against Merlin’s, “You were the only one who came to mind. I thought how perfect it would be to have you truly next to me in everything.”

He felt Merlin’s tears against his face again, “So, _Mer_ lin, if you compete in this competition, would you do me the honor of wearing my favor?”

Merlin choked out a yes, backing away from Arthur with wide eyes, but managed to say, “But! Can I do this as Merlin, not Emrys? If you want to see what I can do, then I need people not to be scared of me already.”

Arthur laughed, slinging his arm around Merlin and sighing out a breath when Merlin’s head rested on his shoulder, “Merlin, who would be scared of you?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> woo the next day post from me? v rare. thank you to everyone for reading this so far 🥺💞 we should have more magic fun in the next chapter with the tournament--and dw, merlin is gonna kick assss (i do love me some bamf merlin, i cant help it)


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> competition begins

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> big shout out to @teaamfreewill (on tumblr) who is amazing and lovely and talented. she helped me figure out what to do for the competition 🥺true queen (also, she just posted a merthur (wip) fic and its truly amazing. i recommend!!!)
> 
> (also, gilli is from season 3 episode 11 if you were curious. it’s a great episode, i rewatched it to get more of his characterization and dudley was fantastic as him!!)

As it turned out, many people were scared of Merlin—according to the Druids, that is. Declan informed him the next morning while helping Arthur create the tournament that no Druid, in their right mind, would ever compete after feeling Merlin’s power. So, that left only non-Druid competitors, which Arthur mused he could work with. 

~~~~~~~~~~

Merlin couldn’t believe this. He finally told Arthur everything—he felt like a weight had been freed from his shoulders. 

Merlin was walking happily to Gaius’s chambers when he heard Lancelot behind him. 

“Merlin!” 

Merlin spun around, a smile on his face, “Lance!”

Lancelot smiled at Merlin’s exuberant mood, “Everything went well, then, my friend?”

Merlin’s eyes glowed bright gold when he hugged Lancelot tightly, “Thank you for always being here for me, Lance. I wouldn’t be here without you.”

And when he pulled back from Lance, two crowns of blue and yellow flowers were in Merlin’s hand. Merlin placed one on Lance’s head, who laughed freely, and asked about the second crown. 

Merlin gave a small smile, “For your lovely Gwen, of course, as she is my best friend after all! Tell her I’ll see her soon and give her this for me?”

Lance gave him another hug, “Of course, Merlin. Oh! Before I forget, you are competing in this competition, right?”

Merlin made a disgusted face that Lance let out a small laugh at, “Yes, I told King Prat that I would. I have to stay at his side in one way or another, why not take up the position?”

Lancelot squeezed his shoulder, “Merlin, this is amazing. I’m so proud of you.”

Happy tears formed at Merlin’s eyes when he nodded at his friend, “Freedom feels weird.”

Lance laughed again, slinging his arm around Merlin’s shoulders to walk him back to Gaius’s room, “Get used to it.”

~~~~~~~~~

After talking through it with the Druids, Gaius, and Morgana, for a week, Arthur finally had the competition planned out. There is going to be three events, each event upping the last to prove resilience, courage, power, kindness, and loyalty—everything the Knight’s Code stands for. 

And in one week’s time, the competition will begin. 

~~~~~~~~~~

Merlin was stressed—to put it lightly. Arthur refused to tell him what the tournament would be, and he didn’t allow Merlin to attend him during that entire week of planning and the week leading up to the competition because Arthur told Merlin, multiple times, that “You need to train for it! Go!”

So, not only does Merlin have no idea what’s going to happen or how to “train for it,” but he also hasn’t seen much of Arthur—which really dampened his mood. 

He didn’t know how to do magical feats without an imminent threat about to murder them all...so, after having a drunken discussion with Gwaine, he was going to wing it. That sounds like a solid plan, right? 

“Trust in your magic” was Kilgharrah’s advice, so Merlin decided to take the days off as leisure time. However, he didn’t really know how to do “leisure time,” so he laid in his bed most of the time playing with his magic. 

And, two days before the competition, that’s how Gilli found him—lazing about on his small bed making a scene out of fire magic by thinking about Arthur fighting. 

Merlin heard his door open but didn’t bother to look until he heard Gilli laugh, “What happened to the man who told me ‘one day magic will be permitted once again, and you'll no longer have to hide who you are’? Huh? This is what becomes of freedom?”

Merlin laughed as he sat up, “Gilli! It’s good to see you again!” He got up and strolled to his doorway, grasping Gilli’s hand, “I knew our paths would cross again someday.”

Gilli smiled at him, looking around Merlin’s room a little dubiously, “So? Are you competing? That little fire scene seems a little anticlimactic to the man I met all those years ago.”

Merlin shrugged sheepishly, “To be honest...I’m bored.”

Gilli laughed again, pulling Merlin by his arm out the door, “Then let’s go practice!”

Merlin stumbled over his feet following and squeaked, “Practice!?”

~~~~~~~~~~

Since Arthur heard grunting outside his window, and deciding that ignoring the copious amount of paperwork currently on his desk was the best course of action, he walked to the large window facing the courtyard to the noise. 

What he saw gave him a small pause before he bursted out laughing: Merlin and some kid were playing with his “supposed legendary” roundtable knights. And by playing, he meant making his knights dance with each other, they were performing flips and dips and ballet. Arthur hadn’t laughed this hard in weeks.

The reason he hasn’t laughed that hard, he realized sobering up, was because he hasn’t seen much of Merlin lately. He leaned against his windowsill now, watching the sun play off of Merlin’s hair. _He looked ethereal,_ Arthur thought, _in the brilliant sunlight_. Merlin’s eyes were alight with laughter, currently making Gwaine and Lance tango. 

Arthur smiled at the scene, trying to fight the urge to go down himself to hear Merlin’s laugh up close. Arthur missed Merlin terribly—not that he would ever admit it. Merlin usually did all this meaningless paperwork for Arthur, organizing it by importance, underlining what was necessary, and letting Arthur know what he was allowed to avoid for the time being. But that wasn’t the only thing Arthur missed about his manservant, if he was being honest with himself. 

He missed that laugh, that smile, that gleam in Merlin’s clear blue eyes when he started teasing him relentlessly. These two weeks have been agony—and Morgana has complained multiple times about his “Merlin deprivation depression” as she so kindly put it. He ignored her, but it was true. 

Almost like Merlin could hear his thoughts, Arthur saw those golden flecked eyes glance towards him. Merlin’s smile faded a little, looking up at Arthur with an unreadable expression. 

_Was that longing? Pain? Anger?_ Arthur couldn’t tell, but he watched as Gwaine looked up too and frowned at him. As Merlin’s concentration faltered, Gwaine walked to stand in front of Merlin.

Arthur frowned, Gwaine was saying something to make Merlin look away from him to Gwaine again, and then Merlin was laughing once more at whatever nonsense Gwaine uttered.

Arthur narrowed his eyes at Gwaine then, who just slung his arm around Merlin to steer him towards that kid who was with Merlin— _Gwaine’s face was abnormally close to Merlin’s_ , Arthur brooded, _but why would that bother me?_ He made himself move away from the window to avoid thinking about that train of thought too hard. 

Two more days, and then Merlin will be at his side laughing, he promised himself. 

Merlin can finally be truly free and at his side once more. 

~~~~~~~~~~

Merlin still didn’t want to compete. He was debating whether he should just simply find a way to knock everyone out and be done with it, or maybe calling Kilgharrah to end this with flare, but here he was, walking towards the arena, with no plan in mind. 

Gilli was walking on his left smiling at everyone he passed— _at least I’ll have a friend in there,_ he thought sadly. 

From what little Merlin had put together, there was to be three rounds. And from what he’s seen, there were a decent lot of sorcerers who showed up. No Druids, though, and he thanked his lucky stars—no one would be randomly bowing then, which was always a plus. 

Gilli shoved his shoulder into Merlin’s, “Come on, Merlin! Lighten up, if all goes well, then you and I will have that one on one we hoped for.”

Gilli winked at him, which made Merlin laugh, “Okay, I’ll lighten up if you never wink at me again.”

Gilli chuckled, “That’s fair, my friend,” he stopped at the entrance to look at Merlin, “Good luck, Merlin. We will meet on the field soon, I suspect.”

Merlin gave him a genuine smile, grabbing Gilli’s forearm, “May the best man win.”

Gilli beamed at him and walked to sign in, leaving Merlin to watch the scene unfold around him. 

There were sorcerers _everywhere_. Merlin could feel the magic buzzing off of the people who were already signed in and practicing. Many were in chainmail, he noticed, quickly glancing at himself. _Shit, was chainmail_ _needed?_ He was wearing his royal purple shirt, brown pants, his normal boots. and a red neckerchief made from one of Arthur’s old shirts. He thought he looked decent enough as he glanced around at the field again—he never wore chainmail anyways, so why bother with it now. 

He shook off the nerves threatening to rack through him—he needed to be strong, _for Arthur..always for Arthur._

He heard a low whistle from behind him, and Merlin turned around with a small smile already adorning his face. 

Gwaine skipped towards him, picking him up to hug him tightly, with Leon, Percy, Lance, and Eylan close behind him, all smiling at him. 

Once Gwaine let him go, and he caught his breath from the squeeze, he beamed at his knights. 

Eylan walked up to him first and placed his hand on Merlin’s shoulder, “You got this, Merlin. You’ll hear my sister and I cheer for you the loudest, I can promise you that.”

Merlin laughed softly and quickly hugged the knight, “Thank you for coming.”

Eylan backed up to face him again, “We wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

Leon came next after Eylan walked into the arena, “Merlin, you know you got this, right? This is a piece of cake compared to saving King Arthur all the time.”

Percy came up on his other side, “Yeah! And you have all the knights of the roundtable supporting you if anything happens. You’re one of us. Always.”

Merlin quickly swiped at his eyes, “Okay! Okay! No more sappy emotions,” he smiled at his friends, placing his hand on his heart, “Thank you all.” He jumped up to hug Leon, and then Percy, laughing when Percy picked him up further to spin him in a tight hug.

“Alright, big man, let me have him,” Gwaine grumbled under his breath, but Lance hit him on the shoulder.

“You hugged him first, Gwaine,” Lance scolded with a smile on his face. Gwaine said something else that merited another hit from Lance when Percy laughed and put Merlin down again.

With one more wish of good luck from the two knights, they went off to find Arthur. And all that was left was Merlin standing in front of his two closest friends.

Lance and Gwaine crushed him in a group hug, Merlin chucking slightly, “Guys! It’s not like I’m going to war, it’s just a tournament.”

They both stepped back, and Lance spoke first, “Merlin, this is because we’re so incredibly proud of you, not because we’re worried! Look how far you’ve come—how far we all have come. You, my dear friend,” he clasped Merlin’s forearm, “are the very best of us. You deserve this title.”

Merlin couldn’t speak, his eyes burning traitorously close to tears, and Gwaine grabbed Merlin’s shoulder, “Now… go kick some ass.”

A few tears slipped out when he laughed, hugging his two friends once more, “Thank you guys, I’ll try to win this for you.”

They gave him brilliant smiles, and while walking away, Gwaine turned around and yelled, “Go get them, kid!”

Merlin straightened his back, lifted his chin, and walked into the field knowing that no matter what, he’ll always have a family here.

~~~~~~~~~~

Arthur watched as Merlin, the last competitor in the arena, walked regally to sign in.

It left Arthur momentarily speechless—picturing Merlin dressed up in finery, with his chin perpetually lifted up, and a silver coronet with a Camelot-red jewel in the middle placed upon his raven hair, the stark difference making his eyes shine brighter than the sun. 

Arthur’s day dream was rudely destroyed by Gwaine snapping his fingers in Arthur’s face, “Hello? Princess, you need to wipe the drool before this begins. I have to say, it’s not very kingly of you.”

Arthur snapped his head towards Gwaine, wanting to punch that smug look off his face, when Leon walked in between them, “Sire, it’s time.”

Arthur narrowed his eyes once more at Gwaine, thinking that at least Leon was kind enough to not comment, and then he turned his attention back towards the arena.

~~~~~~~~~~

Merlin gulped looking at the competition. Gilli was way down the line. There were maybe thirty of them, it seemed, by Merlin’s quick count. He felt all their magic radiating around them—some had considerable power, while others not so much. Some even carried a weapon with them, which Merlin didn’t even consider bringing. _Too late now_ , his mind added helpfully, and he grimaced. 

_Let’s do this._

Arthur stood up then, briefly glancing at him, and then addressed the loud, extremely crowded, arena. Merlin didn’t realize so many people would be watching. He felt sweat drip on his neck into his back, _panicking doesn’t help anything_ , he thought, trying to steady himself as best he could.

The crowd grew eerily silent when Arthur raised his hand, “Welcome, People of Camelot, to our first ever tournament of magic!” The crowd roared once more, falling quiet again soon. 

Arthur gave his kingly smile at all the competitors, “Today—today we will make history. I hope that this tournament will mark a new beginning for this kingdom. Magic is free, but I need someone at my side to help me run my court. So, a new Court Sorcerer is the prize of today’s competition. I know many of you have come far and wide to compete here today, and I am forever grateful to you all. My father was misguided during his reign, and I am not ashamed to admit his faults. I will be different. Camelot will be different...better, and stronger, for it. I am proud to call Camelot my home.”

Here he paused, letting the clapping overwhelm them all, before continuing, “There will be three events today. After discussing this situation with many of my trusted council, the competition will be based after the Knight’s Code. After all, being a Knight represents everything I try to stand for: loyalty, honor, valor, strength, and kindness. These values are what keeps us united.”

He stopped briefly again and continued, “Before today, you were all asked about something you have never done before—magically, that is. This first competition shows true courage. As such, each one of you must perform the act you have never done before—because trying something new takes courage beyond comparison. I wish you all luck today...and may the best person win!”

Cheers pulsed through Merlin’s eardrums. He had forgotten about that odd conversation he had with that Druid a week ago, if he was being honest. He didn’t even remember what he had said! At least he wasn’t first to go, so he managed to grab a seat next to Gilli to watch everyone perform.

After 15 competitors went, with only 6 managing their task completely, Merlin was called into the arena. 

Merlin heard his heartbeat vibrating through his chest as he stumbled his way to the middle. He took a deep breath, looking towards the unknown Druid to Arthur’s left who has been announcing all the tasks so far.

The Druid nodded slightly at Merlin, unable to resist the urge to, Merlin guessed, and Merlin nodded back slightly, a small smile on his face.

“Merlin of Ealdor, you told me that you have never been able to fly before, didn’t you?”

 _Oh shit, I did say that, huh._ Merlin swore colorfully under his breath, but he spoke out, “That’s right.”

The Druid smiled, “Then your first task is to fly, Merlin, as far as you can.”

He heard the other competitors murmuring under their breaths, but he blocked them out. _Flying shouldn’t be that hard...right? Shit, shit, shit._

Merlin looked quickly at Arthur and immediately felt better. Arthur was looking at him with pride, with _love,_ and Merlin knew right then that he could fly. He always felt like he was flying with Arthur anyways, so this wouldn’t be any different.

He smiled at his King bowing slightly, then he straightened up, closing his eyes. He imagined his first hug with Arthur, how light he felt when it happened. Arthur wasn’t a big affectionate man, but the little things, like that one hug, or when he rustles Merlin’s hair, or patting him on his shoulder after a battle, always made Merlin feel breathless. Invincible, almost. 

He felt his power steadily inside him, building up at his thoughts. And when he heard gasps, he knew he did it.

He opened his eyes, and gasped himself. He had to be 30 feet in the air. _Okay, don’t panic, don’t panic_ , he repeated again and again. He noticed he was slightly glowing, which was new, when he softly returned to the ground once more.

There was utter silence, and then everyone cheered loudly. Merlin beamed.

Arthur and the knights were standing, clapping, and whistling at him. He laughed, giving everyone an exaggerated bow, and went back to his spot. Everyone clapped him on the shoulder as he went, but he really only had eyes for Arthur—Arthur, who hasn’t looked away yet, who was staring at Merlin with true wonder and delight in his eyes.

Merlin’s heart never felt so full.

The competition ended with 12 sorcerers in total moving onto the next round. Gilli made it, by summoning lightning, that had Merlin beaming with pride.

 _We’ve both come so far,_ Merlin thought happily.

Arthur stood up once more, the sun a few candle marks short of it’s apex behind him, and announced the second competition:

“The next trial will show resilience—a trait extremely valued as a Knight of Camelot. There are many days that will be hard to get through, whether an enemy is wearing you down or maybe you feel as everything is going wrong, and the ability to recover quickly from these kinds of difficulties is hard to come by. One way to show resilience is by mastering your emotions before they overwhelm you, taking control of your inner strength to fight your way through hardships. So, for this task, you will all face an inner weakness—brought about by Aura, the Druid you have all met, who will show it to you. You may back out now if you do not wish to face it, and you will lose no honor or dignity—you have my word. As I was told, we will all be able to see both you and your weakness; however, you will not be able to see us anymore. This will be hard, and I wish you all the best. Let the next round begin!”

The competitors that were left started shifting on their feet waiting for their turn. Merlin saw two older sorcerers leave after Arthur’s speech, and Merlin didn’t blame them. He understood that this competition needed to not be bias or easily won, but this scared the living shit out of even him—and Merlin doesn’t truly fear much. Fearing fear itself, though, seemed like a reasonable weakness to him. 

Gilli was the third to go this time, and Merlin, his curiosity winning out over his conscience, went closer to watch him.

Gilli walked up, unfaltering, to the middle of the arena. He smiled at Arthur and the Druid, the young women, Aura, and nodded his head in permission. The crowd grew silent again, watching with slight fear and anticipation, as Aura chanted the spell.

Through the light mist, Merlin could see Gilli staring at the scene playing before him. 

Merlin realized how truly scary this round was watching Gilli—when he realized magic would be useless against his weakness, whatever it was.

This test is a battle within them, to see if they can step up and face their fears head on. As Gilli’s face turned to terror and despair, Merlin forced himself not to intervene—even as every fiber of his being was screaming to help. 

Merlin thinks he saw Gilli’s father fighting against the bandits that killed him, in the mist, refusing to use his magic even as Gilli’s screamed for him to protect himself. The scene shifts to Gilli fighting against Uther once more, but this time, there is no Merlin to stop him. Merlin can see how angry Gilli is again—Uther ultimately killed Gilli’s father, just like every other magic wielder that Uther indirectly killed by feeding the fear of magic.

Gilli’s anger rang true, slashing his sword against the mist of Uther. And right before the killing blow, Gilli stared at his hand. At the power he holds. To take another life to avenge a death is not uncommon, but Merlin’s gut still clenched with sadness when the anger seemed to be winning. When Gilli pulled up the blade to strike the killing blow, he, instead, threw the blade in the other direction. 

Breathing hard, Gilli fell to his knees, the mist clearing up. Merlin doesn’t hesitate—he ran directly to him, kneeling besides the young sorcerer. 

“You did good, Gilli, you did good,” Merlin repeated it, rubbing Gilli’s back, helping him stand up. Leaning against Merlin, Gilli looks up to Arthur and Aura. 

Aura nods at Arthur who says, “Congratulations, Gilli. You’re in the final round!” 

Merlin can tell that Gilli’s weakness hurt Arthur as well—but he doesn’t make any move to comfort Arthur, at least, not yet. That will come later.

Merlin helps Gilli off the arena as another person is called. Seeing Gaius come through the crowd towards them, Merlin whispers to Gilli, “Okay, we’re going to sit now. Gaius is going to help.”

~~~~~~~~~~

Arthur barely watched as the next competitor failed, thinking about how he saw his father again.

To see him through such a perspective...it made Arthur’s heart and head hurt. He knew his father made mistakes—many mistakes—but the hatred that went through Gilli burned brightly—and Arthur couldn’t help but picture every sorcerer feeling the same way because of Uther’s misplaced guilt. 

It cracked open an old wound that Arthur did not want to touch, at least not here. The next woman did not succeed in facing her emotions steadily, and another sorcerer came out to help her back. 

Merlin’s name rang out next, and Arthur wanted to look away. He didn’t want to know Merlin’s weakness. 

But he will. 

~~~~~~~~~~

Merlin heard his name get called and he hesitated, looking at Gaius for support. The old man walked away from the previous women to hug Merlin, “My boy, you can do this. You know who you are, do not forget it.”

Merlin hugged him back tightly, “I won’t.”

And with a sigh, Merlin walked back onto the field. The lady looked at him sadly, “Are you ready to face your weakness?”

“As I’ll ever be,” Merlin said softly, watching the mist fall over him. 

_Arthur stared at him in horror, “You’re not Merlin.”_

_Merlin gasped when he realized he remembered this dream—he’s had it thousands of times since he arrived in Camelot. He reacts the same each time, throwing his hands out like he was taming a wild animal, “Arthur, no, I can explain.”_

_Arthur shook his head, “You’re a monster.”_

_Merlin stumbled back a step—every time Arthur said it in his dream, it always hurt the same._

_You’re a monster, repeated over and over. Now it floated around his head in Merlin’s own voice._

_The next time Merlin blinked, he saw himself in front of him. This wasn’t the normal dream, and real Merlin tilted his at the mist version of himself._

_Mist Merlin laughed loudly, eyes solid gold, and started circling Merlin._

_“Oh, how pathetic,” the Mist sneered, “your biggest weakness is yourself?”_

_Merlin stumbled back another step, “No.”_

_“No?” The mist purred, “Then what am I?”_

_Merlin tried to stand up straighter but his shaking wouldn’t subside long enough to let him._

_The Mist laughed again, a cruel, dark laugh that Merlin would never use, “Your biggest weakness isn’t simply yourself. No, that would be too easy for us. Your weakness is your deep rooted fear of yourself—of your true power. You have no idea what or who you are, do you? Are you even human?”_

_Merlin tried to steel himself, “Yes. I—we are human.”_

_“Hmm,” the Mist said unconvinced, “maybe if you say it enough, you’ll actually believe it.”_

_Merlin flinched when he saw other mist figures emerge: his father, Freya, Will, his mother, Arthur, and Morgana._

_As one they whispered, “monster,” over and over._

_Merlin, tears flowing down his face, finally screamed, “No!” They stopped—all of them surrounding him now._

_He shook his head vehemently, “No.”_

_He felt his eyes glow, “I am **not** a monster. Monsters are unfeeling, they show no remorse, they kill for fun. I am not a monster. I feel...too deeply, I know that, but it’s all there. I am not a monster because I love and I grieve and I laugh.” _

_He walked to the Mist him, all the others fading away, and looked himself directly into his golden eyes, “I am human. And I may not know or understand my power, but it’s mine. I have people, who I love, who are willing to help me through it. So...leave. I don’t need you here.”_

_The Mist version gave him a sarcastic bow and blew away._

Merlin gasped, falling to the ground. Lancelot, however, caught him before he could hit, helping Merlin stand. Aura was swiping away her tears, giving Arthur a nod of affirmation.

Merlin forced himself to look at Arthur. 

He was a mess. Merlin reckoned that they look similar right now, actually. Arthur’s face was red and blotchy from his tears, on the edge of his seat, staring at Merlin. Merlin couldn’t understand the expression on his face, but he saw the deep pride in Arthur’s bright eyes. 

“Merlin,” Arthur sighed out loud, “congratulations. You made it to the final round.”

Merlin let out a small laugh, “Finally.”

He sagged against Lance as they made their way over to Gaius, who handed him a foul tasting potion and hugged him again. The potion helped immediately, clearing his foggy mind and helping his limbs feel less like lead. 

Merlin plopped ungracefully next to Gilli, “Well, my friend,” here he took another swig of the potion, “at least we only have one more to go.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh dear lord i am so sorry for how long this got omg
> 
> to be fair, i was aiming for 1.5k...but well, shit happens😂
> 
> i am so sorry this is late as well 😭 i had a shit week but i hope the length makes up for it!! one more chapter to go, i hope you guys are liking this so far!! thank you all who have left such lovely comments 🥺💞they mean a lot to me.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the final round!!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ✨another quick thank you to @teaamfreewill on tumblr for helping me bc she is a queen and deserves the world. ✨

All that were left were six sorcerers, four women, named Aelin, Lys, Elide, Evangeline, and Gilli and Merlin. Merlin was extremely nervous—these women kicked ass throughout the entire event. 

They all looked like they'd seen better days however, but all, as a group, limped out to listen to Arthur explain the last round.

He stood up regally, addressing the small group of huddled sorcerers, “Congratulations to you all for making it to the final round. You have all been incredible so far! With only one event left, just know that I will forever be grateful for each and everyone of you for competing in this tiresome tournament—as you have all been put through much exertion thus far.

For the last event, it will be split into two. This round will illustrate strength, and power, as those are important in battle for every Knight of Camelot to possess, so we will end this day with a normal-like tournament! The first part will have you all paired off to fight, and when there is a clear victor after the round, that person will move on to the final part. The last three standing will fight off, and the winner will become Camelot’s Court Sorcerer!”

The crowd went wild, cheering for whoever they wanted most, while Merlin sagged a little at the aspect of _more_ fighting. He already hated tournaments because of the useless fighting, and he was happy thinking that this one would be different for once. Arthur then told them who they would fight against—Merlin was put against Lys, and they would be going first.

Merlin closed his eyes, pinched the bridge of his nose, and sighed out loud—loud enough, actually, for his competitor to hear. She smiled at him, her emerald eyes crinkling at the corners, and chuckled out, “What’s with the theatrics, Merlin?”

He turned around grinning at her, “That’s my best quality, Lys! Half my personality is being dramatic, you must know this by now.”

She let out a twinkling laugh, “Oh yes, I know. Are you going for dramatic in our fight, then? I’ll join you, of course.”

He nodded with fake seriousness and bowed playfully, “Of course.”

Merlin heard Arthur cough pointedly, so he looked up to find his king with an amused look on his face. Merlin tilted his head, “What?”

Arthur coughed again to cover his small laugh, “It has started, Merlin,” as he gestured to the now empty field with only Lys and him. 

“Oh,” Merlin said sheepishly, looking towards Lys, “shall we?”

Lys grinned, “I thought you’d never ask.” 

She immediately transformed herself into a snow leopard, her bright green eyes unmistakable. Merlin frowned down at his unimpressive human body, _I want to do that._

She growled, circling him like she would any other prey, and he couldn’t help but let out a laugh under his breath and smirk, “Dramatic indeed.”

He conjured his old Sidhe staff quickly and winked at Lys, “Bring it on, kitty cat.”

She pounced. 

By the end, Lys couldn’t maintain her form for too long as the activities of the day drained up her well of magic and was exhausted soon after they began. 

Merlin helped her up after their battle, smiling at her, “Well fought, Lys. We’ll have to do that again sometime, hm?”

She let out a tired laugh, “Sure, Merlin, just let me have a few hours of sleep and I’ll kick your ass after.”

He laughed softly as he helped her to Gaius, listening to the battle about to begin between Evangeline and Gilli. 

It was a fairly even match, but Gilli managed to outsmart the young, red haired Evangeline. Both came staggering towards Merlin, as Aelin and Elide walked into the arena laughing together. 

Although Merlin knew that Elide’s cunningness was powerful and important in battle, she had no chance against Aelin—making it the shortest round of the three. Aelin helped Elide back to them, whispering something to Elide that made her laugh and blush. They were given a short break before the last battle, so Merlin, forgoing the rules of not interacting with the crowd, walked over to Gwaine.

“Merls! You’ve done amazing!” Gwaine yipped, jumping over the fence to hug him. Merlin laughed, hugging him back, and looked up to see Arthur’s blank stare on them.

“Gwaine, why is Arthur looking at us like that?”

Gwaine let him go and slung his arm around him, maneuvering him towards the other knights, “That is because, my dear friend, our princess is jealous.”

Merlin’s eyes went wide, “Jealous!? Of what?”

Gwaine only smirked, ruffling his hair, and jumped back over the fence.

Merlin snuck a quick look back at Arthur—this turned out to be a mistake since the minute he turned back, their eyes locked in place. It made Merlin freeze. 

Merlin tilted his head, confusion plain to see, but Arthur just blinked and turned towards Gwen, who was talking enthusiastically next to him. Merlin didn’t stop staring until he heard Aelin cough next to him—who, it seemed, was also forgoing the rules.

He whipped his head towards her, seeing her bright eyes alight with humor. She smiled at him, “Merlin, why are you staring at the King like he hung the moon?”

Merlin felt his face heat and spluttered out, “I..I—no, I was just..”

He gave up once she couldn’t keep in her laughter anymore, and he gave her a sheepish smile, “Is it that obvious?”

She patted him on the shoulder, looking where he was staring a moment ago, “If it makes you feel better, I caught him looking at you the same way.”

He narrowed his eyes at her, “No way, he doesn’t look at me like that.”

Aelin tusked, “I know what I saw. Ro gives me the same look, and I’m sure I look at him that way, too.”

“Ro?” 

She smiled at him again, “My husband. He’s a sorcerer, as well, actually.”

Merlin gave her a small smile at the love in her voice, “Why didn’t he compete?”

Her face turned fake-sour, “He said with my ego, there would be no more room for him to join. I told him that he must be scared to go against me, but that conversation ended with us kissing which means he won that argument.” 

Merlin laughed again, “You’re an excellent sorcerer, Aelin. Camelot would be lucky to have you.”

She gave him a warm smile this time, “Thank you, Merlin. But we all know who’s going to win, don’t we?”

She also ruffled his hair (he didn’t know why everyone kept doing that) and gave him one more smirk before swaggering towards someone in the crowd with silver hair— _That must be Ro_ , Merlin thought, as he watched them reunite and kiss. Ro really did look at her like she was the only star in the sky...Merlin looked back at Arthur, feeling his heart beating faster. 

_Shit, I do love Arthur a lot, don’t I?_ He pondered that epiphany all the way back to Gaius. He plopped next to Gilli again.

“Ready for this to be over?”

Merlin groaned, closing his eyes as he hit his head against the fence, “You have no idea.”

~~~~~~~~~~

Arthur was truly trying to listen to what Gwen was saying about the battles so far, he really was, but he couldn’t get Merlin’s face out of his mind. Merlin’s confused face was so incredibly endearing that Arthur didn’t think it was fair for him to use it when he was trying to be upset about Gwaine hugging Merlin again—though, _why would I be upset about something so trivial?_

He nodded along to Gwen even as she started talking to Aura, watching as Merlin’s head thunked against the fence he was leaning on. Arthur didn’t want this last round to happen. He should’ve just gave Merlin the stupid title instead of going through this silly tournament that he knew Merlin hated—and now Arthur has to watch Merlin possibly get hurt again. His chest ached from thinking about it—he wasn’t forcing Merlin to participate, was he?

Arthur stood up suddenly, wanting this to be over, and the whole arena quieted down. 

“This is the last round—we are down to the final three sorcerers. Aelin,” she bounced out to the field, beaming at her husband, “Gilli,” he walked subdued to the middle with the girl, “and, last but not least, Merlin.” Merlin walked out surprisingly calm and gave one smile to him—Arthur ignored the urge to go hug his warlock.

He saw Aelin poke Merlin in the side, to which Merlin swatted her hand away. She laughed under her breath, and Arthur continued, “The fight will go one until two has yielded, do you three understand?” 

They all nodded at him, so he lifted his chin a little more and finished: “It has been an honor to watch you all compete today! After this is over, I must insist on all of you joining us tonight for the feast—thrown in celebration for our new Court Sorcerer. Now, walk ten paces away from each other, and on my mark, the fight will commence.”

They all did what they were told, and a few moments later, Arthur announced, “Begin!”

Aelin attacked first. Arthur noticed, throughout the day, that the women preferred fire magic more than anything else, and she did not disappoint here. She conjured a staff of flames—in golds, reds, blues, and whites—and she spun it with expert precision at Gilli. Gilli managed a weak wall of water, but Aelin easily went through his defense. 

With her fire, which seemed to not burn badly, wrapping around his body, Arthur heard Gilli yell “I yield! I yield!”

Her fire immediately vanished from Gilli, and she spun on her heels to Merlin, who was staring at Gilli with wide eyes. Merlin took a step towards his friend, his eyes speckled with gold, but Aelin stepped in front of him.

“Now, now, Merlin,” she gave him a sweet smile, “He’s fine! Now,” here she made her fire staff again, “let’s have some real fun.”

Arthur watched as Merlin debated going around her to check on Gilli, but then watched as his friend limped out of the field. Merlin’s shoulders relaxed a bit as he turned his attention to the girl.

“What was that for?” Merlin asked, “Why single me out?”

They began circling each other as Aelin purred, “It would be no fun if I had to fight Gilli! You, on the other hand, would be a challenge. I enjoy a good challenge.”

Merlin gave her a playful smile, still circling, “Oh? What should I do to fulfill this desire for a good battle? Want me to pull out some fire as well?”

Aelin grinned, “Bring it on, my friend.”

Merlin’s grinned matched hers as he made a sword of his own of bright flames— _made mostly of gold and red flames,_ Arthur mused, wondering if Merlin knew he looked like Camelot’s greatest defender illuminated with her colors. 

Aelin went on offensive first, like always, and staff and sword met in the middle. Arthur saw Merlin’s face brighten up as Merlin—out of nowhere—took over the offensive position. He struck, over and over, forcing Aelin to stumble backwards with each step. 

Arthur jumped out of his seat when he finally recognized Merlin’s fighting style— _they are my moves,_ Arthur thought amazed. Arthur watched in bewilderment as Merlin did his signature twirl perfectly, laughing as he did so, and started attacking Aelin once more. 

Sweat drenched their faces as they parried, blocked, feinted, and swung at each other—both extremely qualified in their own right. Arthur couldn’t stop the pride in his heart as Merlin did another one of his famous moves knocking Aelin on her back.

Instead of putting his sword near her neck to end this, Merlin stepped back allowing her to rise again. _He shouldn’t be so bloody honorable now,_ Arthur groaned internally. 

Arthur watched as Aelin managed to get herself up, leaning on her staff, smiling at Merlin again. 

She limped closer to Merlin, “I knew it would be fun against you!”

Merlin let out a small puff of laughter as he threw his sword of fire in the air and watched it turned to smoke, “Swords are so bruteish,” he muttered, “despite how good we are, I prefer a good old fashioned magical fight, hmm?”

Aelin straightened, smiling as her fire staff disappeared, “Come on, then.”

Aelin struck first, making Arthur suck in a breath of surprise as her fireball hit Merlin square in the stomach. Merlin hissed at the pain, and Arthur wanted to jump in and end it right then. 

_Merlin’s hurt, Merlin’s hurt,_ Arthur’s mind replayed the scene over and over, and all of a sudden he felt Lancelot’s hand on his arm.

“Sire, sit down, Merlin will be fine,” he heard Lance whisper, watching him wearily. Arthur glanced down at himself, surprised to find him almost to the edge of his seating near the entrance to the arena.

He looked up at Lance, “Yes, yes, you are right, of course.”

He looked out to the fight again when he made it back to his seat. Merlin was chanting something around Aelin, who kept trying to throw more flames at him. Merlin dodged her flames easily. The sky started darkening randomly then, the clouds swiftly moving above them, covering the bright waning sun. 

Arthur watched as Merlin finished the chant, the sky rumbling in response, and, a moment later, it started downpouring. 

Merlin smiled at the sky, “No more flame, Aelin. Try something else.”

She grimaced at the rain, like it personally offended her, and she changed tactics. 

She looked thoughtful for a minute before she began chanting her own spell, making the clouds rumble more. Arthur watched as lightning flashed across the sky, and then he realized what she was trying to do. _She was trying to summon lighting,_ he thought in panic. 

He watched as Merlin realized it as well when Merlin started yelling over the thunder, “No, Aelin! You can’t!” But she didn’t listen, as she continued chanting steadily, and the electricity in the air felt almost suffocating. This didn’t feel like what Gilli managed during round one, this felt wild—uncontrollable. 

The last thing Arthur remembered was Merlin's face as the lightning streaked down. Merlin’s eyes were on him, strangely enough, as the whole world turned white. 

~~~~~~~~~~

Merlin watched in horror as Aelin kept chanting, _this wasn’t a normal spell._ It was more detailed than he had ever heard, and as he felt the air thicken with uncontrollable static, he knew what he had to do. Reaching quickly into his power, he looked towards Arthur’s panicked eyes. 

_No one was going to get hurt._

He threw out his arms as the bolt came down. A golden shield erupted around the arena, the shield going up into the clouds. Merlin managed to shield Aelin as well from the wild electricity, feeling himself weaken every second. He pulled too much magic much too fast. He held, though, until after the lightning hit and the clouds quickly cleared. 

~~~~~~~~~~

Arthur blinked out the bright spots in his vision, grabbing the edge of his chair as he looked up. A beautiful translucent wall was thrown up between the crowds and the arena. Arthur stood up quickly, looking inside the field. Aelin was on the ground, panting, with one shield similarly around her. 

_That left...Merlin,_ Arthur tried to jump into the arena, banging on the wall-like structure. Merlin’s purely golden eyes seemed to vaguely recognize him, and as the shields dropped, so did Merlin. 

Arthur jumped over it and ran towards Merlin, falling down on his knees next to him.

“Merlin,” Arthur whispered, lifting Merlin’s head, “Are you okay?”

Merlin blearily opened his eyes, which were still quite gold with some blue speckled in, “Is everyone alive?”

Arthur let out a surprised laugh, “Yes, idiot, everyone is still alive.” Arthur put his hand on Merlin’s heart, sighing out a relief to feel it beating normally, “Thanks to you,” he said quietly. 

Merlin smiled at him, “I’m going to rest, now, alright?”

“No, no, Merlin,” Arthur lightly slapped his cheeks, but Merlin was out cold. 

Arthur looked up, “Gaius! Gaius!”

He saw Gaius walk over quickly, “I’m here, my boy, I’m here.”

Arthur let Gaius hold Merlin instead and rubbed his hand over his face, surprised to find tears there. He stumbled back a step, giving Gaius some room, and he turned around to look at the arena. 

All the roundtable knights were surrounding them with equal expressions of worry, but Arthur managed to see Aelin being helped up by a man with silver hair. Arthur walked over to them.

“Are you alright, Aelin?” Arthur asked. 

She turned quickly around, “Sire! I am so sorry! I did not mean for that to happen, I swear it on my life.”

Arthur watched as Aelin leaned closer to the silver haired man, who also tightened his hold on her watching Arthur wearily. 

Arthur sighed, “I know, Aelin. I just wanted to see if you were alright.”

He watched the tension drain out of both of them, “Yes, I am alright. Thanks to Merlin, that is. To be honest, I read that spell in a book a little while back and I wanted to try it. I didn’t know it would be so,” here she motioned her arms wildly. 

Arthur let out a small laugh, “Well, at least you know now, right?”

She leaned further back into the silver haired man, “True. Though, I doubt I’ll be trying that again any time soon. I am still sorry, Your Highness.”

Arthur sighed out, “I am just grateful no one was hurt.”

Aelin peered over his shoulder, “Merlin will be okay, won’t he?”

Arthur turned around as well, feeling his relief sweep through him as Merlin sat up talking to Gaius and Lance. 

Arthur smiled, “He always is.”

Aelin turned towards him, “Sire, it may not be my place,” the man poked her side but she ignored him, “but may I suggest making your move first?”

Arthur whipped his head at her, “What?!” He squeaked out very kingly. 

Aelin giggled, “I mean, sire, that Merlin will never make the first move since he believes you do not love him the same.”

And as Arthur opened his mouth to refute, Aelin glared at him, shutting him up, and she continued, “I see it, King Arthur. You cannot deny what you feel. Merlin is good for this kingdom and his place is at your side. It always has been, hasn’t it?”

Arthur numbly nodded, disbelieving that she read through him that easily. Aelin nodded to herself, and then patted Arthur on the shoulder, “Good luck, my liege. Just remember that Merlin loves you the same.”

And with that, Aelin and the man walked over to where Merlin was trying to get up. Arthur watched as Aelin slowed to apologize, as Merlin smiled at her, and as Aelin flung herself into a hug against him. Merlin hugged back tightly, but looked up to see Arthur watching. 

Merlin smiled at him and Arthur, despite himself, beamed back. 

~~~~~~~~~~ 

Merlin, with the help of all the roundtable knights, limped back to his room. They left Arthur to close out the tournament, and Merlin wanted a quick nap before the feast tonight. 

Once they made it to Gaius’s workplace, Gaius threw all of them out demanding that Merlin be left alone to rest. 

As they all mumbled apologizes on the way out to Gaius, Merlin limped to his small room and plopped face first onto his bumpy mattress. He immediately fell asleep. 

He woke to the sun almost disappearing over the horizon, and he groaned as he realized that the feast would be starting soon. He went to leave his bed but stopped when he saw Arthur watching him on a nearby chair. 

Arthur cleared his throat when Merlin quirked an eyebrow at him, “Uh, um, I wanted to see how you were doing.”

Merlin gave him a small grin, “Careful, Arthur. Don’t want to be too sappy.”

Arthur laughed at the attempt to lighten the mood, “Yes, yes,” he waved him off, “maybe we all need some sappy every once in a while.”

Merlin lightly hummed in agreement, swinging his legs over to face Arthur, who was oddly close to him now. 

Arthur’s face was unreadable as he said, “Oh! Congratulations on being the new Court Sorcerer! After you left, the people of Camelot went wild for you. All of them saying how noble it was to not only protect them but Aelin as well. They believe it showed kindness, strength, and power. Although I was already planning on giving you the title, they wouldn’t stop ranting about how amazing you are for the position.”

Merlin laughed a little, “Thank you, Arthur. I hope I will serve you well.”

“You always do, Merlin.” 

There was a small, rather awkward pause, so Merlin said, “Was there anything else?”

Arthur cleared his throat again, “Yes! I wanted to say how amazing you were today—as Arthur, that is, not as the king.”

Merlin gave him a soft smile, “Thank you.”

The genuine smile seemed to throw Arthur off for a second, but Merlin watched as Arthur shook his head and moved his chair directly in front of him. Merlin tilted his head. 

“I-,” Arthur began, looking vaguely nervous, “I also wanted to know..well, I was wondering if maybe you..would like to..I don’t know..if I could court you sometime?”

Merlin’s mouth fell open in surprise, “Arthur Pendragon. Are you asking me out?”

Arthur’s face reddened and he turned away slightly, “Only if, you know, you and Gwaine aren’t already courting.”

At that, Merlin bursted out laughing, finally understanding what Aelin and Gwaine told him today.

Merlin lightly grabbed Arthur’s face in both hands, “Arthur, I love you.”

He felt Arthur’s pulse quicken as he stammered out, “Yeah?”

Merlin leaned closer, letting Arthur take the final step if he wanted, “Yeah.”

Merlin’s breath hitched as Arthur closed the distance completely. 

After a few moments, they leaned their foreheads against each other, and Arthur breathed on Merlin’s lips, “God help me Merlin, but I love you too, you idiot.”

Merlin beamed at him, grabbing Arthur's hand to kiss his knuckles, “Shall we go to the feast, then? I want to get it over with as quickly as possible so we can get onto more pressing matters.”

Merlin winked at him as he got up, skipping out his door, as he heard the king mutter some undignified curses behind him as Arthur tried to quickly catch up. 

“Merlin! You cannot say that before a feast! What am I to think of now besides that!?” 

Merlin’s twinkling laughter echoed in the hall as he ran to the feast.

__________

Afterwards, the king and his new court sorcerer could be found celebrating Merlin’s new promotion quite differently...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HELLO!!! welcome to the end🥺 thank you all for sticking with me for this short lil story that i wrote way more for than i thought i would!! 
> 
> if you want to give me a prompt or just say hello, i am also on tumblr as @bellamyblakru !! 
> 
> also, if you read those sorcerers names and was like i know them!! you probably read the throne of glass series LOL to be fair, i fucking love all the women in that book and i wanted to include them somehow. i finished that series a month or two ago and i miss them :( and yes, aelin galathynius is a fucking queen and i love her so much. (if you haven’t read this series, i recommend. amazingly badass women fighting ftw and rowan whitethorn is in there and he owns my heart)


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